I do the cooking in our house because I enjoy cooking and my wife does not. I usually make huge messes when I cook: countertops flecked with flour and fruit juice and butter, stove top smoking with burned on spills, a sink overflowing onto the large cutting board with stacks of dirty pots and pans.

Last night as I finished cooking supper I commented, “I should have a neat cook come watch me and give tips on how to minimize the mess.” Kimberly replied, “that’s who I am! If you want to improve, you just have to put a much higher value and concentration on cleanliness as you cook. But do you really want to go that route? It might stifle your pleasure in cooking.” She was exactly right. So now I have been set free to blissfully make messes (as long as I clean up afterwards). I have a wise and understanding wife.